Muddle Earth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Muddle Earth is a children's book by Paul Stewart, published in 2003, and illustrated by Chris Riddell. It is largely a parody of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Like LOTR it is divided into three sections: Englebert the Enormous, Here Be Dragons and Doctor Cuddles of Giggle Glade.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Joe, a boy from ordinary Earth, has been summoned to Muddle Earth by the wizard Randalf. He is then extorted as a 'warrior-hero'. In other words, he must fight evil on behalf of Randalf, who has in turn been contracted by the ruler of Muddle Earth, the Horned Baron. The Horned Baron, however, has problems that even Randalf cannot attend to: his wife Ingrid is a very demanding woman. This is a trait that the evil villain Doctor Cuddles pays heed to, and uses to his advantage in all three sections of the novel.
It culminates in a search for the Great Book of Spells in order for Joe to go home. The search takes them into the heart of Giggle Glade, where Doctor Cuddles lives. This is where he is unmasked, as Randalf's old, magically animated teddy bear, thanks to Brenda the Warrior Princess.
[edit] Similarities with and internal parodies of Lord of the Rings
Characters
- Joe - Frodo: the reluctant hero, who just wants to go home.
- Randalf - Gandalf: the wizard, albeit incompetent.
- Brenda the Warrior Princess - Eowyn: A red haired, muscular warrior princess. Frightened of nothing, except elves.
- Elves - The Elves in Muddle Earth are very different from those in LOTR. Hardworking, they resemble the house-elves from the Harry Potter series.
Places
- Muddle Earth - Middle Earth: the setting of the story.
- Mount Boom - Mount Doom: a mountain that goes "BOOM", thus the name.
- Musty Mountains - The Misty Mountains: where Gollum was found by Bilbo Baggins
[edit] Other People and Places
People
- Norbert - His full title is Norbert the Not-Very-Big, even though he is 15 feet tall. Cannot read. Perhaps a reference to Hagrid's dragon in the Harry Potter series, Norbert/Norberta.
- Veronica - A blue budgie. Familiar of Roger the Wrinkled, and later Randalf.
- Henry - Joe's faithful battle hound.
- Roger the Wrinkled - The greatest wizard in muddle earth. Was captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Bertram the Incredibly Hairy - Wizard. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Boris the Bald - Wizard. Brother of Bertram. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Eric the Mottled - Wizard. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Ernie the Shrivelled - Wizard. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Melyvn the Mauve - Wizard. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- Colin the Nondescript - Wizard. Helped Dr Cuddles create the Tickle Squad. Captured by Dr Cuddles.
- The Horned Baron - Ruler of muddle earth. Husband of Ingrid. First name of Walter. Slight resemblance to the Horned King from The Black Cauldron.
- Ingrid - Wife of the Horned Baron. Described as having huge, pudgy legs and big feet.
- Grubley - Owner of Grubleys Discount Department store.
- Fifi - A.k.a. Mucky Maud of Mucky Mauds Lumpy Custard Club. Loves the Horned Baron.
- Englebert the Enormous - Huge ogre. Terrorised Muddle Earth by squeezing sheep while looking for its snuggly-wuggly, which Grubley stole and made into singing curtains for Ingrid.
- Benson - Head gardener for the Horned Baron. Promoted to the Horned Baron's personal manservant. Later promoted to Horned Baron.
- Margot - Friendly female dragon. Likes Norbert. Likes shiny things.
- Quentin the Cake Decorator - Randalfs' first warrior hero. Now serves Dr Cuddles.
- Dr Cuddles - A mysterious, cloaked figure. Revealed to be Randalf's pink teddy - Charlie Cuddles. Animated by Randalf by accident. Very evil.
Places
- Here Be Dragons - Area of mountains with lots of caves full of dragons.
- Harmless Hill - Quaint looking hill. Quite harmless, you just have to look out for the killer daisies.
- Trollbridge - A bridge inhabited by trolls. Very messy.
- The Musty Mountains - A very, very old mountain range. They stink because all old things smell at least a little.
- Goblintown - A large, cramped city. Home to the goblins. Very characteristic odour.
- The Perfumed Bog - A wide purple bog. Smells sickly sweet.
- The Enchanted Lake - A big lake that floats. Raised by, and home to, the wizards.
- Ogrehills - A hilly area. Home to the ogres.
- The Horned Barons Castle - A big castle in the musty mountains. Home to The Horned Baron.
- Elfwood - A wide forest, in which all the trees can talk. Once was home to the elves, until they were all employed around Muddle Earth.
- Giggle Glade - Home to Dr Cuddles. Is a glade with a sweet cottage situated in the middle of Elfwood.
- The Sandpit - A pit full of sand. Good for Goblin picnics.
[edit] Creatures
[edit] Other parody references
- Potholes - the meaning is taken literally, as a hole in the ground for pots for elves to cook things in, "What better place for a pot than a pothole". Variants include kettleholes.
- The Teaspoon - A small silver teaspoon. Revealed to be The Lord Of The Teaspoons.
One teaspoon to rule them all, one teaspoon to heed them, one teaspoon to bring them all to giggle glade and lead them!
[edit] Jackanory
In (near the end of) 2006, Muddle Earth was adapted for CBBC's recently revived Jackanory series. The Jackanory version covers the Englebert the Enormous section only, as the whole story couldn't possibly fit into a total of three 15-minute episodes. Muddle Earth is read by actor John Sessions and produced and directed by Nick Willing.
